Esther Cruijsen

Esther Cruijsen is an external researcher specializing in Nutrition and Disease at Wageningen University, where she recently completed her PhD on February 28, 2025 with her thesis titled Habits for a healthy heart: Epidemiological studies on diet and lifestyle factors across diverse subgroups of patients with cardiovascular disease. She was a PhD candidate in the Diet and cardiovascular risk management project from July 2020 to February 2025 under promotor Geleijnse, M.

Dr. Cruijsen's research focuses on cardiovascular epidemiology, particularly examining how dietary patterns, nutritional interventions, and lifestyle modifications affect mortality risk in patients with cardiovascular conditions. Her work prominently features studies on adherence to dietary guidelines, yogurt consumption, body composition metrics, and their relationship to cardiovascular outcomes in post-myocardial infarction populations.

Her research portfolio includes 22 publications with significant contributions to the understanding of how specific dietary components influence cardiovascular health outcomes. She has actively engaged with media to translate her scientific findings for public consumption through multiple press and media appearances where she discusses practical dietary recommendations for heart disease patients.

• Cardiovascular Disease epidemiology
• Myocardial Infarction outcomes
• Dietary guidelines adherence
• Body composition and mortality risk
• Nutritional interventions for cardiac patients

Dr. Cruijsen has collaborated extensively with researchers across multiple institutions, as evidenced by her co-authorship on numerous publications with diverse research teams. Her work has practical implications for dietary recommendations in cardiac rehabilitation programs and secondary prevention of cardiovascular events.